Inside The Hiring Manager’s Head At The Job Interview – 4/10/2014

Knowing what the hiring manager is thinking can give you the edge you need to make a great impression.

Do you ever wonder what hiring managers think about during interviews? Whether they stare intensely or scribble in a notebook, their actual thoughts may surprise you—for some hiring managers are wondering if you have the necessary skills to perform as a medical office manager. Instead, most are contemplating three main questions. Understanding these questions—and how hiring managers collect the data they need to answer them—can give you the edge you need to make a great impression.

1. Is this candidate the right fit for our practice/team culture?

If the employer has invited you to a job interview, you’ve already convinced the hiring manager that your skills and experience are on par with the other candidates they are considering. Now the hiring manager wants to learn more about your personality so he or she can assess how well you’ll fit in with the rest of the team and the practice or clinic culture as a whole. You will be asked questions such as “What did you like and dislike about your previous manager?” and “What motivates you to perform a job well?”

While it’s important to answer honestly—you don’t want to end up in an employment environment that’s a bad fit, either—it doesn’t hurt to learn what you can about their management style and the hospital culture ahead of time. Check out their website and speak to a few other employees, if possible. You might learn something you can use when formulating your answers.

2. How well does this candidate know his/her own strengths and weaknesses?

While it’s important for candidates to have confidence in their knowledge and experience, it’s also essential that they recognize they do not know everything. The best healthcare professionals can perform under pressure and ask for help when they need it. They take pride in their success but also take ownership of their mistakes. The hiring manager will ask questions about behavior in various situations to determine how well you understand your own strengths and weaknesses.

“Tell me about a time you made a mistake at work. How did you handle it?” and “Tell me about a time you had to handle a difficult patient. What did you do?” are examples of behavioral interview questions you might hear at an interview. Hiring managers will always view direct, honest answers that show humility and an ability to learn from challenging experiences favorably.

3. Can I trust this candidate to get the job done?

Managers have enough to do without babysitting the employees beneath them. For this reason, hiring managers are likely to ask you questions that will help them determine how much supervision you need and how much responsibility you’ve taken on successfully in the past. Expect inquiries such as “Are you self-directed or do you prefer to be told what to do?” and “Tell me about a time you were asked to work outside your job description. What happened?”

Convincing hiring managers that you’re responsible, dedicated, and committed to furthering your career will go a long way towards assuring them you are a candidate they can trust to get the job done.

As you prepare for your next job interview, consider this look inside the head of the average hiring manager. Provide details within every response that will help hiring managers answer their most pressing, unspoken questions and you’ll be that much closer to landing your next job.